Gezicht op de Dessatempel en het graf van Luitenant Kalff before 1897

Christiaan Johan Neeb made this photograph of the Dessatempel and the grave of Lieutenant Kalff. We see here a carefully framed image, likely produced in the Dutch East Indies, now Indonesia. The photograph, taken during a period of colonial expansion, presents us with a complex layering of cultural and political narratives. The Dessatempel, a Hindu temple, stands as a testament to the region's indigenous culture and long history. In front of the temple, is the grave of Lieutenant Kalff. Consider the institutional backdrop: the colonial administration, the military presence, and the role of photography itself as a tool for documentation and control. What does it mean to position a colonial officer's grave in front of a temple, a traditional site of worship? The image may be read as a subtle assertion of power, a visual statement about the imposition of colonial rule on the existing cultural landscape. By studying archival records, colonial documents, and historical accounts of the Dutch East Indies, we can unearth the multiple layers of meaning embedded within this seemingly straightforward photograph.